Jazz Alley

I had the privilege to have a conversation with the maestro Oscar Hernandez, how is Spanish Harlem Orchestra's musical director. Here is an excerpt of that conversation. LMC: Oscar, welcome to Latino Music Cafe. You're going to be…

The 4 -time Grammy nominated, and 2-time Grammy winner Spanish Harlem Orchestra was born from a need to expose good Salsa music, not to continue with the commercial pop-Salsa prevailing at the time. The Spanish Harlem Orchestra is about…

Orquesta Aragón has been one of the premier musical groups in Cuba for 73 years. No, that's not a typo. Founded in 1939, they have maintained a surprisingly pure traditional Cuban musical sound through all these years. When you see and…

His band has congas and yet his music sounds much mellower than the stereotypical hot and loud danceable Latin music. A mix of trova, son, feeling, and jazz, the music of Juan Carlos Formell is not the typical danceable music, particularly…

If you like Salsa music, it’s likely you’ve heard Lewis Kahn play, even if you don’t recognize his name. This low-key, affable trombonist-violinist has played with some of the most recognized names in Salsa and Latin music, including…

Poncho Sanchez brought some Latin heat from California and energized the Seattle Dimitrious’ Jazz Alley stage with a different repertoire than from his previous presentations. I saw a more energized Poncho Sanchez, sporting a shorter…

I had the privilege to watch a Milton Nascimento performance at Seattle's Jazz Alley. The aging Brazilian icon is slower, but his voice and music are as captivating as always. Aging Brazilian Still a Great Performer with Limited Mobility…

People at Dimitrious’ Jazz Alley in Seattle were sweating during the longest day of the year. The perspiration of musicians and audience was not because of the long sunny day outside, but rather due to the hot Latin music coming from…

Cuban flautist Orlando "Maraca" Valle is one of the most important producers, composers and performers of anything from Latin Jazz to Salsa to Cuban Timba in the music scene today. I had a chance to talk to Maraca ahead of his…